background

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbæk.ɡɹaʊnd/, /ˈbækɹaʊnd/

• Audio (General American):

  (file)

Etymology 1

From back +‎ ground. Compare backstory.

Alternative forms

• back ground (obsolete)

Adjective

background (not comparable)

1. Less important or less noticeable in a scene or system.

   background noise

   The antivirus program runs on a background thread.

Antonyms

• conspicuous, foreground, forestanding, primary, prominent

Noun

background (countable and uncountable, plural backgrounds)

1. One's social heritage, or previous life; what one did in the past.

   The lawyer had a background in computer science.

2. A part of the picture that depicts scenery to the rear or behind the main subject; context.
   • 2013 May-June, William E. Conner, “An Acoustic Arms Race”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 3, pages 206–7:

     Earless ghost swift moths become “invisible” to echolocating bats by forming mating clusters close […] above vegetation and effectively blending into the clutter of echoes that the bat receives from the leaves and stems around them. Many insects probably use this strategy, which is a close analogy to crypsis in the visible world — camouflage and other methods for blending into one’s visual background.

3. (film) An extra who appears in the background, with no speaking role.
4. Information relevant to the current situation about past events; history.
5. A less important feature of scenery (as opposed to foreground).

   There was tons of noise in the background.

   The photographer let us pick a background for the portrait.

7. (computing) The image or color over which a computer's desktop items are shown (e.g. icons or application windows).
8. (computing) A type of activity on a computer that is not normally visible to the user.

   The antivirus program is running in the background.

9. (physics) Clipping of background radiation.

Derived terms

• background check
• backgrounder
• background fodder
• background investigation
• background music
• background noise
• background process
• background processing
• background radiation
• background radiation equivalent time
• background right
• backgroundy
• cosmic background radiation
• cosmic gravitational wave background
• cosmic gravitational-wave background
• cosmic infrared background
• cosmic microwave background
• cosmic neutrino background
• deep background
• extragalactic background light
• gravitational wave background
• gravitational-wave background
• headground
• low-background
• low-background lead
• low-background steel
• multibackground
• on background
• superbackground

 

Translations

social heritage

• Belarusian: пахо́джанне n (paxódžannje)
• Catalan: bagatge m
• Danish: baggrund c
• Dutch: achtergrond (nl)
• Finnish: tausta (fi)
• French: origine (fr) f, passé (fr) m
• German: Hintergrund (de) m
• Greek: καταγωγή (el) f (katagogí)
• Hebrew: רֶקַע (he) m (réka)
• Hungarian: háttér (hu)
• Irish: cúlra m
• Italian: formazione (it) f, istruzione (it) m, legato (it) m, retaggio (it) m, bagaglio culturale m, esperienza (it) f, contesto (it) m
• Malay: latar belakang (ms)
• Marathi: पार्श्वभूमी f (pārśvabhūmī)
• Polish: doświadczenie (pl)
• Portuguese: instrução (pt) f, formação (pt) f, experiência (pt) f
• Russian: (origin) происхожде́ние (ru) n (proisxoždénije), (education) образова́ние (ru) n (obrazovánije), (training) подгото́вка (ru) f (podgotóvka), бэкгра́унд (ru) m (bɛkgráund), о́пыт (ru) m (ópyt) (experience)
• Serbo-Croatian: poreklo (sh) n ((Ekavian)), porijeklo (sh) n ((Ijekavian))
• Spanish: formación (es) f
• Swedish: bakgrund (sv) c
• Tagalog: sanligan
• Ukrainian: похо́дження n (poxódžennja)
• Vietnamese: cơ sở (vi), nền (vi)

part of picture

• Armenian: ֆոն (hy) (fon)
• Azerbaijani: zəmin
• Belarusian: фон m (fon), за́дні план m (zádni plan)
• Bulgarian: фон m (fon), за́ден план m (záden plan)
• Catalan: fons (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 背景 (zh) (bèijǐng)

• Czech: pozadí (cs)
• Danish: baggrund c
• Dutch: achtergrond (nl)
• Esperanto: fono
• Finnish: tausta (fi)
• French: arrière-plan (fr) m
• German: Hintergrund (de) m
• Greek: βάθος (el) n (váthos)
• Hebrew: רֶקַע (he) m (réka)
• Hindi: पृष्ठभूमि (hi) f (pŕṣṭhbhūmi)
• Hungarian: háttér (hu)
• Ingrian: foona
• Italian: sfondo (it) m
• Japanese: 背景 (ja) (はいけい, haikei)
• Kannada: ಹಿನ್ನೆಲೆ (kn) (hinnele)
• Kazakh: артқы көрініс (artqy körınıs)
• Korean: 배경(背景) (ko) (baegyeong)
• Latvian: fons (lv) m
• Macedonian: позадина f (pozadina)
• Maori: tuarongo
• Marathi: पार्श्वभूमी f (pārśvabhūmī)
• Polish: tło (pl) n, dalszy plan m, drugi plan m
• Portuguese: fundo (pt) m, plano de fundo
• Romanian: fundal (ro) n
• Russian: фо́н (ru) (fón), за́дний план m (zádnij plan), (colloquial) бэ́кграунд (ru) m (bɛ́kgraund), бэкгра́унд (ru) m (bɛkgráund)
• Serbo-Croatian: pozadina (sh) f
• Spanish: fondo (es) m, trasfondo (es), lontananza (es) f
• Swedish: bakgrund (sv) c, fond (sv) c
• Tagalog: sanligan
• Turkish: arka plan (tr)
• Ukrainian: фон m (fon), за́дній план m (zádnij plan), тло (uk) n (tlo)
• Vietnamese: nền (vi)
• Walloon: erî-plan (wa) m

relevant information

• Armenian: նախագիտելիք (hy) (naxagitelikʻ)
• Azerbaijani: zəmin
• Catalan: antecedents m pl
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 背景 (zh) (bèijǐng)

• Czech: pozadí (cs)
• Danish: baggrund
• Finnish: taustatieto, historia (fi)
• French: antécédents (fr) m pl, historique (fr) m
• German: Hintergrund (de) m
• Greek: υπόβαθρο (el) n (ypóvathro)
• Hebrew: רֶקַע (he) m (réka)
• Hindi: पृष्ठभूमि (hi) f (pŕṣṭhbhūmi)
• Italian: storia (it) f, antefatto (it) m, antecedente (it) m
• Japanese: 背景 (ja) (はいけい, haikei), バックグラウンド (ja) (bakkuguraundo)
• Korean: 배경(背景) (ko) (baegyeong), 예비지식(豫備知識) (ko) (yebijisik), 백그라운드 (baekgeuraundeu)
• Malay: latar belakang (ms)
• Polish: kontekst (pl) m, pochodzenie (pl) n
• Portuguese: antecedente (pt) m, histórico (pt) m
• Romanian: context (ro) n
• Russian: конте́кст (ru) (kontékst), предпосы́лка (ru) f (predposýlka), подоплёка (ru) f (podopljóka), предысто́рия (ru) f (predystórija), бэкгра́унд (ru) m (bɛkgráund)
• Scottish Gaelic: cùl-fhiosrachadh m
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Roman: kontekst (sh) m, pretpovijest (sh) f

• Slovak: pozadie n
• Spanish: antecedente (es) m
• Swedish: bakgrund (sv) c
• Tagalog: sanligan
• Ukrainian: тло (uk) n (tlo)
• Vietnamese: bối cảnh (vi)

less important feature

• Catalan: rerefons m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 背景 (zh) (bèijǐng)

• Danish: baggrund c
• Finnish: tausta (fi)
• French: fond (fr) m
• German: Hintergrund (de) m
• Greek: βάθος (el) n (váthos)
• Hungarian: háttér (hu)
• Italian: secondo piano m, sottofondo m
• Japanese: 背景 (ja) (はいけい, haikei)
• Korean: 배경(背景) (ko) (baegyeong)
• Polish: drugi plan m, dalszy plan m
• Portuguese: segundo plano m
• Russian: фо́н (ru) (fón), за́дний план m (zádnij plan), бэкгра́унд (ru) m (bɛkgráund)
• Spanish: segundo plano m
• Swedish: bakgrund (sv) c
• Vietnamese: nền (vi)

computing: computer background

• Arabic: خلفية f (ḵalfiyya)
• Armenian: խորք (hy) (xorkʻ)
• Esperanto: fono
• Finnish: taustaväri (fi), tausta (fi), taustakuva (fi)
• French: fond d’écran (fr) m
• German: Schreibtischhintergrund m, Hintergrundbild n
• Hungarian: háttér (hu)
• Italian: sfondo (it) m
• Japanese: バックグラウンド (ja) (bakkuguraundo)
• Korean: 바탕색 (ko) (batangsaek), 백그라운드 (baekgeuraundeu)
• Malay: latar belakang (ms)
• Marathi: बॅकग्राउंड m (bĕkagrāuṇḍa)
• Persian: پس‌زمینه (pas-zamine)
• Polish: tapeta (pl) f
• Portuguese: plano de fundo m, fundo (pt) m
• Russian: фон (ru) m (fon), бэкгра́унд (ru) m (bɛkgráund)
• Scottish Gaelic: cùlaibh m
• Spanish: fondo (es) m, fondo de pantalla m
• Swedish: bakgrundsbild (sv) c, skrivbordsbakgrund (sv) c
• Turkish: arka plan (tr)
• Vietnamese: hình nền

computing: activity not visible to the user

• Bulgarian: за́ден план m (záden plan)
• Dutch: achtergrond (nl)
• Esperanto: fona tasko
• Finnish: tausta (fi)
• French: tâche de fond (fr) f, en arrière-plan (fr)
• Georgian: ფონური რეჟიმი (ponuri režimi)
• German: Hintergrund (de)
• Hungarian: háttér (hu)
• Italian: sottofondo m, in sordina
• Japanese: バックグラウンド (ja) (bakkuguraundo)
• Korean: 백그라운드 (baekgeuraundeu)
• Malay: latar belakang (ms)
• Persian: پس‌زمینه (pas-zamine)
• Polish: tło (pl) n
• Portuguese: segundo plano m
• Romanian: fundal (ro) n
• Russian: фо́новый режи́м m (fónovyj režím)
• Spanish: en segundo plano m
• Swedish: bakgrund (sv) c
• Turkish: arka plan (tr), arka (tr)
• Vietnamese: nền (vi)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Afrikaans: ^{(please verify)} agtergrond

Verb

background (third-person singular simple present backgrounds, present participle backgrounding, simple past and past participle backgrounded)

1. (transitive) To put in a position that is not prominent.

   Synonym: downplay

   • 2006, Paul Baker, Using Corpora in Discourse Analysis, page 163:

     One aspect of the story that appears interesting is that the alleged rapist and victim are only referred to by name together in the same sentence once. In all the other sentences, one receives more focus, while the other is backgrounded.

2. (journalism) To gather and provide background information (on).
3. (transitive) To increase the weight and immunity of (a calf) by feeding with forage and grains, as an intermediate stage in cattle production, between weaning and placement in a feedlot.

Etymology 2

Verb

background

1. simple past and past participle of backgrind

Italian

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English background.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /beɡˈɡrawnd/
• Rhymes: -awnd

Noun

background m (invariable)

1. cultural background (of a person)
   • 1995, Domenico Starnone et al., La scuola:

     Vivaldi: Insomma, noi dobbiamo partire dal background di questo ragazzo.
     Mortillaro: Background, ah, come lo odio l'inglese.

     In short, we have to start from the background of this boy.
     Background, ah, how I hate English.

Romanian

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English background.

Noun

background n (plural backgrounduri)

1. background

   Synonyms: fundal, fond

Declension

	singular			plural
	indefinite	definite		indefinite	definite
nominative-accusative	background	backgroundul		backgrounduri	backgroundurile
genitive-dative	background	backgroundului		backgrounduri	backgroundurilor
vocative	backgroundule			backgroundurilor

Spanish

Noun

background m (plural backgrounds)

1. background